


As Good as Gold

by Kawaiihibiscus



Category: Shrek (Movies)
Genre: Age Difference, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Demon!Rumplestiltskin, F/M, Fluff and Smut, I'm Sorry, Idiots in Love, Kinky shit in later chapters, Reincarnation, Romantic Fluff, Why Did I Write This?, Work In Progress
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-13
Updated: 2020-04-20
Packaged: 2021-03-01 19:02:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23622019
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kawaiihibiscus/pseuds/Kawaiihibiscus
Summary: The third princess of Ubraria, an Island kingdom across the sea from Far far away, has been affianced to an unknown man since infancy. Surely he must be a great honor and status to be engaged to a Princess right?...Think again. E'lir finds herself married to the infamous Rumplestiltskin and trying to navigate her new chaotic life.
Relationships: Rumplestiltskin (Shrek)/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Prologue

Across the ocean far from the kingdom of Far Far Away, was an island kingdom ruled by a King with three daughters. Princess E’lir, his youngest daughter was adopted but meant no less to him in his heart. No one knew where the king had acquired the little Princess, it was very uncommon for a royal to suddenly adopt a peasant baby. All kinds of rumors floated around the kingdom about the third Princess’ true parentage. Maybe another royal family didn’t want a daughter? Perhaps the King took her in out of the kindness of his own heart. The most outrageous rumor involved a demon bringing the baby princess to the king.

E’lir sat in front of her sewing machine, her gold rimmed glasses sliding down her nose. She was working diligently on a new kimono from the fabric that had recently been gifted her. It was a beautiful green silk that shone like the sea in the sunlight. She was currently embroidering small gold flowers into the hem of the gown when her older sister walked in. “My darling seamstress! Is my dress ready?” her sister, Sayuri, waltzed in like she owned the place. She was always so dramatic. “I don’t see why we even have a dressmaker when my little sister is the best seamstress in the kingdom.” E’lir pulled her eyes away from her work to look her sister in the eye. “I’m not as good as you say but I’ll take the compliment.” She smiled warmly at the tall thin girl who was currently sitting on her four-poster bed. Being adopted she didn’t look anything like her sisters. Her hair was black while her they were blond making her quite literally the black sheep. “So, is it here?” E’lir’s gold eyes sparkled with anticipation. “Oh, you mean this.” Sayuri held out a letter with the telltale red wax seal bearing an “R” in the middle. Her sister always brought her the only mail she expected. These letters where incredibly special to the youngest princess, these where in fact letters from her betrothed. He would write to her every week for as long as she could remember. He would tell her about his travels across the sea and about all his magical endeavors.

“Will you read it to me this time” Sayuri sat up from the bed excitedly. “You already know the answer” E’lir took the letter from the older girl and chooed her out of the room. “C’mon Ellie, I gotta know what juicy details you guys spew about.” Sayuri couldn’t get another word in thanks to the door shutting behind her. E’lir ran over to her writing desk and broke open the seal to read the letters contents

_My dearest, Ellie,_

_During these days I spent almost all my waking moments in anticipation. You haunt my every dream and cross my every thought. This year you will come of age and we will finally be reunited. The very idea practically brings tears of relief to my eyes. I can barely wait a day longer to hold you, to kiss you, to tell you all my deepest secrets in the privacy that we will share. But most of all I can’t wait to finally be one with you, to have a new life together._

_How have your magic lessons going? Is Merlin still tutoring you? I hope your progressing well, but I trust you’re taking to it naturally like a needle to thread._

E’lir blushed at the compliments and sweet buttery words.

_I have incredible news! Whilst I am writing this, I’m boarding a ship that’s Ubraria bound. I will arrive in a couple days before your birthday. We can use this time to get to know each other better before I whisk you away. I can’t wait to have you by my side again._

She could hardly contain her excitement; in a couple days she would be eighteen. That meant that she would be old enough for her lover to come stake his claim on her, just as he promised. She would finally have the chance to meet him face to face. Suddenly, she started to panic. Questions upon questions flooded her mind. What if he didn’t like the way she looked? She wasn’t unattractive but she wasn’t she fairest of them all. E’lir had lovely long black hair but was a little plumper than most would expect a princess to be. What if he found her boring? Maybe their interactions would be different from the letters. Would they be wed right away or wait a while until they’re both prepared? She looked at the date of the letter and compared it to todays date. Dear god, he’ll be here tomorrow! E’lir could feel herself getting dizzy from panic. “Shit!” She whispered to herself. There’s so much that needs to be done! Including this formal kimono if she hoped to impress her future husband. She knew this day would come, but it was all happening so soon! She reread the paragraph scanning for any missed details. Then her eyes came across his last sentence.

_I can’t wait to have you by my side again._

Again? What did he mean by again? This was strange considering that E’lir has yet to meet her fiancé. They’d been affianced since she was a baby. This would usually bother most people, but weirdly enough she didn’t have a problem with it. They’d been corresponding since she was could read. She sometimes wondered how old he was or what he looked like, but after getting to know one another via the hundreds of letters over the years, she couldn’t bring herself to care anymore. She looked forward to his letters every week and it had kept her going through some hard times. He always knew how to cheer her up and make her feel like the most special girl in the world. With that thought, she continued the letter, ready to soak up the rest of his worlds.

 _Did you get the fabric I sent? The beautiful shade of green made me think of how it would contrast your dark hair. Like a raven in a meadow. I know you’ll put it to excellent use with those magic hands of yours_. _You and I both have quite an eye for the beautiful and priceless. I can’t wait to see the garment you create. Perhaps you’ll wear it for me? One can only dream._

She looked down at the half-finished embroidery, it seems like she’s going to be pulling another all nighter for this garment to get done by the morning. Absolutely determined to look her best and not make a fool of herself.

_I keep you in my dreams Ellie, even the ones that you shouldn’t talk about out loud._

She blushed; he usually made some sort of suggestive comment like this. It seemed her fiancé is a bit of a pervert. But then again so am I, she thought grinning to herself.

_Until I look at you with my own eyes,_

_Yours forever,_

_Rumpelstiltskin_

Her fingers grazed his signature, it was an uncommon name but what could she expect form a foreign man. Carefully she folded the letter and put it in a small oak chest with the others she’s received. She saved every single letter, when she felt down, she would read through them. She took a deep breath and walked over to her closet to dig out a bottle of wine from a secret stash kept in there. Uncorking it and taking a swig, she cracked her knuckles and sat back at her sewing machine…it was going to be a long night.


	2. Deja vu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ellie's fiancé seems weirdly familiar.

As the young Princess finished the last hem on the belt of her new kimono, streaks of sunlight cracked through the curtains. The golden glow illuminated the room and signaled that her servants would soon be here to “wake” her. She stood grabbing the now empty wine bottle chucking out the window. Ellie hung up the finished kimono, sat on her bed and waited in anticipation for the tell-tale knock.

Just like clockwork, the servants knocked and entered at exactly 7:30 am. “Good morning my lady, how did you sleep?” “Great!” she lied, if they knew she had been up all night they’d tell her mother who’d scold her for not taking better care of herself. “What’s on the agenda today?” She stood from the bed, letting her servants help her into a more casual kimono than the one she made during the night. All thought it was simple, it was still exquisite and fit for her title. It was a pale blue with a lemon-yellow trim, small koi fish decorated the bottom and sleeves. “You have breakfast with your family, then your magic lessons with Merlin, and then you have tea with your mother and her court ladies. Then you have some free time before dinner.” The eldest servant of the three read her schedule while the younger ones tied her belt and handed her a hairbrush. “Oh…I see” E’lir was disappointed, she hoped that they’d tell her a guest was here to see her, or that a certain suitor was waiting in the parlor. But none such news. Maybe he’s been delayed somehow, she’s waited 18 years, another couple days wouldn’t kill her.

As promised by her agenda, after being dressed, groomed, and polished. She was deemed suitable for breakfast and was ushered downstairs to the family parlor where the royal family often took meals together. All though not as luxurious as the grand hall, it was cozy and offered the family some privacy. “You look beautiful as always, my little crow.” Cooed her Queen mother, she was an older woman with golden locks that she’d pinned up in an elegant bun as usual. Ellie cringed at the pet name; she had no idea why her mother though it necessary to compare her hair colour to a scavenger bird. Her sisters all sat near the queen, while E’lir took her seat next to her King father. “Thank you, mother, you as well.” Ellie returned the compliment while pushing in her seat. Breakfast was nothing special, they ate while talking about unimportant things like the weather and her sister’s latest suitor endeavors. She couldn’t necessarily count on her family for a riveting conversation. When she tried to bring up politics, literature, or anything of interest, she was quickly shut down. She could only hope for substance in conversation with Merlin or in her letters.

After breakfast and at least 4 cups of coffee, she excused herself and made her way to the East wing tower where Merlin resides. The so-called Great wizard lived more like a stoned teenager than a wise magic master. All though his methods of teacher where unorthodox at best, E’lir took any chance of learning magic she could. Her parents had discovered her talent at age 5 when she made her mother’s dead flowers bloom again. They’d argued about allowing her to learn magic, her mother argued that it was unfit for a princess. Then the very next day, her father had employed Merlin to come to the castle and tutor her. She’d heard stories of the legendary wizard Merlin, but upon meeting him she found only a hippie in a wizard’s robe and flip flops. In retrospect, Merlin’s appearance was probably a lesson in judging a book by it’s cover.

She opened the door to the East tower and waited for him in the makeshift classroom he had set so long ago. It had a traditional chalk board, potions set, magic tomes and desk for her to sit but there was also touches of Merlin’s oddities spread about the room. He had multiple lava lamps of different colours, wind chimes, tie-dye carpet and essence burners containing various essential oils. Eventually, Merlin finally came down the stairs from his chambers. “Ah, Good morning my star pupil” He put a couple scrolls down on his desk and walked over to E’lir to hand her one. She noticed his usual weedy smell and took the scroll from him. “I’m your only pupil Sir” She said reading the contents of the scroll, apparently, they’d be covering advanced healing today. “Right…Anywho let’s begin with reviewing the basics of healing.” The lesson went by as usual except for the fact that Ellie could barely keep her eyes open, her lack of sleep finally catching up to her. Luckily, Merlin didn’t seem to notice as he was currently on a tangent about how “Our auras are integral to harmonious healing.” Eventually, Merlin make a small cut in his own arm to allow her to practice as he found that practicing on animals was “Unethical and perverse.” Once Merlin was satisfied with her technique, he finally dismissed her. E’lir was gathering her things when one of her servants burst threw the door, panting and out of breath. “My lady, it’s very urgent *pant* you have a visitor” E’lir shot up from her desk “Who?” “A man, he says he’s your betrothed my lady.”

Ellie heart pounded as she ran as quickly as she could in her kimono to her bed chambers. She needed to change at ounce, she needed to make a good first impression! Her servant followed her diligently and helped her into the kimono she worked so hard on the night before. She put on a pair of emerald earrings he had gifted her a couple years ago and put her hair in a complex braided style. Her servants helped place multiple hair ornaments that were also gifted by Mister Stiltskin. Finally, she touched up her makeup, adding a bold red lip to contract the pastels of her ensemble. “Okay, It’s now or never.” She breathed deeply to settle her nerves and made her way to the parlor.

Making her way down she could her muffled yelling, it sounded like her mother. She’d heard their angry yells before when they argued, but this time it was much more heated. Ellie could also make out a third voice this one was of a completely different pitch but definitely male. Realization suddenly struck her and she rand down to where the arguing was coming from. She could make out parts of what they were saying now. “We had a deal!” “You’re dangerous and can’t provide for her!” “She belongs to me, and it’s up to her!” E’lir burst through the door to everyone’s surprise. It was then that she got her first look at her future husband. He was small, probably a dwarf or a halfling, she would need to ask. He had reddish auburn hair and vivid blue eyes. His face was angular, and his ears were pointed. Luckily, he didn’t look old, she pegged him for maybe early to mid-thirties. Ellie stared for a while soaking in his appearance while he did the same. She concluded that he’s actually pretty cute. He looked mature yet adorable in a pocket-sized kind of way. He would do nicely. He spoke first “Ellie! You’re absolutely ravishing! Look at how grown up you are!” He ran to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. E’lir looked down at him and hugged back, it felt so right and familiar to hold him like this. Her parents scowled, “E’lir, this is Rumpelstiltskin, he’s your betrothed as you know.” They separated and grasped each other’s hands; this contact also felt eerily familiar. His hands where smaller and coarser than hers, they felt so nice in her softer larger ones. “You’re finally here.” She said in almost a whisper. “I promised I would be here, I’m a man of my word.” He reached out to touch her face while turning to glare at the King. Her father cleared his throat. “E’lir my dear, there are things that need to be discussed, please sit” She did as her father asked and sat on a chair between her parents and Stiltskin. “Your father and I think it’s time we told you the truth considering you’re an adult now and Rumpelstiltskin has arrived.” Her mother nudged her father as if to say, “go on”. The King looked down as his clasped hands as if formulating his next words carefully, finally, he took a deep breath and began to recount the tale. “My dear, before you came into this world, our kingdom was on the brink of bankruptcy and starvation.” Ellie knew the truth about her origins would be shocking, but she was becoming confused on where her adoptive father was going with this. “Crops had yielded no harvest, and there was barely any money in the treasury to keep a village alive. Then during one of our bleakest, coldest winters, Rumpelstiltskin arrived at our castle gates. We’d heard stories and rumors about his magical cons and exploits, so we were prepared to turn him away.” The King paused looking down at his feet now, he seemed…guilty somehow? “Before we could banish him, we noticed he had a baby in tow. Curious, I accepted an audience with him. It was then that he presented his contract.” The king exchanged looks with his wife who put a hand on his shoulder. “Mister Stiltskin offered to use his magic to bring the kingdom to prosperity once again. In exchange he only asked that we raise his wife, the baby that he had brought with him. Seeing how important you were to him, it seemed like a fair trade. So, we accepted and signed the contract. The conditions included that we raise you as one of our own, call you by your name given, that he be allowed to ensure your well-being via letters, and that he may retrieve you once you become of age.” The supposed Princess stayed silent for once in her life.

She processed the information. Was she really some sort of property exchange? She had so many questions. Why did he sell her? What did he have to gain? Why did he affiance himself to a baby? Almost as if reading her mind, her fiancé interrupted her train of thought. “I know you have a lot of questions, but I’ll answer any and all you have.” Rumpel put a hand on her thigh as he reassured her. “What did you get in return?” The princess looked at him, almost glaring. “Nothing” He said as a matter of factly “I just wanted to make sure you were protected and provided for while I took care of personal, dangerous business.” He poured them both cups of tea from the set on the table. He added milk to hers, she didn’t remember telling him how she liked her tea. “But now that you’re old enough, you can come with me.” She looked at her parents for confirmation, but they only nodded gravely. “You see my love; I’d rather die than let you go without. I was in a tight situation at the time. So, when I heard that Mr. and Mrs. Ubraria over here were going broke. I seized the opportunity!” He handed her the cup and reached up to touch her cheek again. “And that is precisely why we think it’s a bad idea for you to go with him. E’lir, you have no idea who he is! You can’t run off with some stranger, fiancé or not! If he’s capable of getting himself into all kinds of trouble, what makes you think he can take care of you?!” The Queen was furious, deep down she knew this day would come but she hoped that Rumpelstiltskin would simply forget about her daughter. “Ellie and I aren’t strangers; she’s my wife and I would burn this whole world to the ground to keep her safe!” The situation was starting to escalate, and E’lir could tell she needed to intervene. “I’m going to go with him!” both parties stopped fighting to look at her. “E’lir, you can’t be serious. He’s a crook and can’t give you the life we’ve given you!” “You made a deal Father; I’ve known about this since I could walk. I’ve been preparing my entire life. I can’t begin to explain it, but I feel like I’ll be okay.” Ellie walked over to her parents and took each of their hands. “I appreciate all you’ve done for me, but you need to pay the price. I need to find my own way, especially if it’s with him. I need a life of my own, it’s not like I’m going to be Queen.” The King and Queen looked to be in shock, E’lir had never defied them before, but here she was going against their wishes. “I’m an adult now and my decision is final. We’ll leave tonight.” Rumpel stayed quiet and grinned at the older couple. Then before they could say anything more, E’lir walked out of the parlor to fetch her things.

She would be lying in she said she wasn’t angry about her parents keeping this big of a secret from her. How could they leave out a kingdom-saving magical contract? At least she would be with Rumpel now after all these years of only talking in letters. She was in the process of filling a trunk with various clothes, fabrics, and her sewing machine when she heard a knock at the door. She sighed, probably her parents coming to try and talk sense into her. To her surprise, she was met with a small redheaded man when she opened the door. “I feel like we have a lot to talk about. Come walk with me.” He took her hand and lead her out before she could invite him in. “Where are you taking me?” “The garden so we can have some privacy.” E’lir wondered what was so important that they needed to be away from servants’ ears to say.

Just as he said, they found themselves in the garden walking among the vast display of different flowers both exotic and local. They walked in silence until Rumpel felt they’d gone far enough. “I know you have more questions for me so you can spill it.” He broke the silence while he toyed with one of the lavender bushes. Ellie took the chance happily “Do you know who my actual parents are? If you brought me here as a baby, you must have gotten me from somewhere?” Her new husband turned to look at her, sighed and directed them to a near by bench. “We better sit down for this. There’s no easy way to explain this.” She obeyed and sat with him on the stone bench. “Your parents have been dead for 800 years. How is this possible you may ask? It’s simple really. You’ve been reincarnated twice. It’s a long story so you better buckle up.” He crossed his legs and leaned back allowing his wife a moment to soak in the bomb he just dropped. “It’s actually kinda funny in hindsight. You see 800 years ago during your first life. We pissed of a demon who cursed us with immortality. We can die but we’ll just be reincarnated.” As expected, Ellie’s was at a loss for words. “Whenever you die you kinda just reappear as a baby, weird I know, but that’s demons for ya” She finally found her voice. She needed to stop, to process for a moment. “Wait, wait, wait, you’re saying I’ve already died twice? I’ve already lived two lifetimes?” He didn’t seem phased at her shock. “Well you didn’t really die of old age but that’s not important right now.” “Not important? I died! We’ve had lives together that I can’t remember, and I just met you!” “It’s become apparent that I have some explaining to do.” “you think!?” Before she could belittle him anymore, she felt his lips capture hers. For a second, she thought about biting his lip. But she soon melted into the kiss. Suddenly, like lightning, images started to flash in her mind. She saw him, he looked younger. She saw a wedding and then another. She saw many different places, castles, forests and towns that weren’t Ubraria. She saw him again and again. She saw them together in all these places, talking, singing, making love. As quickly as the visions began, they separated for breath. “Oh my god.” she whispered. “You saw it right? I knew that would help.” Tears started to fall from Ellie’s eyes. She couldn’t believe they’d been apart this long, that they lived these lives together and she didn’t remember. “No, no, Ellie baby I’m so sorry, please don’t cry.” He took a handkerchief out of his pocket and started to dab the tears from her face trying not to ruin her makeup. “I’m sorry I can’t believe I didn’t remember you” “It’s alright, the more time you spend with me the more you’ll remember our past lives, we’ve gone through this before!” She wrapped her arms around him pulling him in a tight hug. He held her just as tight until she stopped crying

They walked back to her room hand in hand. She finished packing. Servants helped her carry her trunk and suitcase to his carriage that had a giant goose pulling it? “Don’t worry that’s just Fifi, she doesn’t bite. You’ll remember her soon enough.” She shrugged and put her things in the intricate wheelhouse. The inside seemed much larger than the outside. There was a kitchenet, a dining table, a small office space with piles and piles of scrolls and parchment. To the further end, there was a velvet curtain separating the living area from the bedroom and bathroom. “Impressive isn’t it? We’ve had this carriage for decades. You actually enchanted it so we can cram more things in it” He popped out from behind her, startling her in the process. “Yeah, it’s pretty roomy.” “All your old things are in our bedroom. I wouldn’t get rid of anything without your permission. I’m a jerk but not a monster.” Her new husband stepped aside to let her exit the carriage.

The afternoon sun passed overhead as E’lir’s family and servants came out to the front gates to say their goodbyes. Her older sisters sobbed and hugged her while swearing to write to her, making their little sister promise the same. Merlin was just as emotional, not that she expected any less. “Here my girl, please take these, and remember to align your chakras” The old Wizard handed her a pile of books and a wind chime. “Thank you, Sir, I’ll try my best with the chakra thing.” The former Princess turned to her adoptive parents to say her goodbyes. “Please E”lir, take care of yourself and if anything happens you can always come back.” Her mother hugged her tightly while her father stayed quiet, only giving her an understanding nod, stoic as always.

After everyone gave their teary farewells and death glares at her fiancée. The couple climbed onto the wheelhouse and took of past the castle gates. Feeling the wind through her hair as they rode out was exhilarating, it filled Ellie with anticipation. She felt Rumpel put his arm around her hips and pull her closer, she gladly leaned into the warmth and her heart swelled for what the night would hold.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry about grammar mistakes, English is not my first language. :(


End file.
